Story Highlights- The Northwest Missouri State University baseball team fell to Northwestern Oklahoma State in the 2015 season opener on Friday, 12-11, in Alva, Okla.
- The Bearcats trailed 10-4 at one point but clawed back with seven runs in the final three innings.
- Northwest is now 0-1 on the season while the Rangers improved to 4-0 on the year.
Key Northwest Statistics- Sophomore right fielder
Austin Wulff got the Bearcats on the board in the top of the second with a solo shot on a 2-1 count. He finished the day 2-for-3 with a walk.
- Wulff drew a bases loaded seventh inning walk to score
Nick Gotta who led off the inning by reaching on an error.
- Shortstop
Nick Gotta had a pair of hits, scored two runs and had an RBI in his Bearcat debut.
-
Kolby Greenslade had a pair of RBI, and scored two runs while going 2-for-5.
-
Steven Garber had a pair of hits and drove in a run in the third inning.
- Catcher
Blake Hardegree had a pair of hits, scored two runs, drew a walk and threw out a base stealer in the third.
- The Bearcats had 11 runs on 13 hits but committed four errors. The Rangers had 14 hits with two errors.
- Northwestern Oklahoma scored three runs in the first, one in the second, six in the third, one in the sixth and one in the seventh.
- Northwest used five pitchers.
Kole Klocko started but after being hit by a line drive, left after two-thirds of an inning.
-
Hondo Pearcy pitched 2.1 innings,
Austin Battaglia pitched 3.2 innings,
Jacob Wagner got the final out of the seventh inning and
Patrick Brady pitched the eighth inning.
Key Northwest Innings- The Bearcats put together a three-run third inning to tie the game, 4-4. Garret Fort led off with a single and scored on a Gotta double.
Paul Johnson followed it up with a walk which drove Rangers starting pitcher Kyle Renbarger from the game.
Kolby Greenslade grounded into a fielder's choice as Gotta advanced to third and Johnson was forced at second. First baseman
Steven Garber singled to score Gotta and Greenslade moved from first to third. Wulff was hit by a pitch after working a 2-2 count to load the bases with just one out.
Luke Wilkinson hit a sacrifice fly to score Greenslade to make it a 4-4 game.
- Down 12-5 heading into the top of the eighth, Northwest clawed back with four runs to pull the game back to within three, 12-9. Hardegree led off the inning with a single but Pablo flew out to center for the first out. Fort drew a five pitch walk to put runners on first and second with one out. Gotta grounded out to the pitcher but advanced Hardegree to third and Fort to second. The next batter, Johnson, hit a single to score Hardegree while Fort went to third. With runners on the corner and one out, Greenslade doubled to clear the bases. After a pitching change,
Steven Garber reached on an error by the center fielder to score Greenslade.
- Hardegree walked to lead off the top of the ninth and Loe called on
Nick Howard to pinch hit for Pablo. Howard responded as he promptly hit a two-run homerun on a 2-1 count to bring the Bearcats to within one run, 12-11.
Up Next- The Bearcats will face Regis College (Colo.) in a neutral site game tomorrow at noon followed by a rematch with Northwestern Oklahoma State at 3 p.m. Both games will take place in Alva, Okla.
